Paula Gold-Williams is no stranger to being a business leader. As President & CEO of CPS Energy, she guides more than 3,100 team members at the nation’s largest municipally owned electric and natural gas utility. Additionally, she is the nation’s only African American female energy CEO. She leads every day by CPS Energy’s People First philosophy of always doing what is right for our customers, employees, and the community.
Gold-Williams, a San Antonio native, was named 2020’s “Woman of the Year” in the Women’s Leadership Awards by the San Antonio Business Journal. She was named a CEO Who “Gets It” by the National Safety Council and was awarded the international “Chief Trailblazer of the Year” by S&P Global Platts in 2019.
She sits on several Boards in and around the San Antonio community, including serving as co-chair of the Keystone Policy Center – an organization that empowers leaders to overcome national and local policy conflicts, and as co-chair of the Energy Pillar of Dentons’ Smart Cities/Communities Think Tank—a collaborative effort to formulate solutions for the integration of technology in communities. As a proud alumna of St. Mary’s University, she serves on the board of trustees supporting their STEM, business, and leadership programs. She also serves alongside San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg and Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff as a member of CPS Energy’s Residential Energy Assistance Partnership (REAP), a 20-year old organization that assists with customer utility bills.
Gold-Williams joined CPS Energy in 2004 after holding various positions in several San Antonio businesses. Paula is a Certified Public Accountant and a Chartered Global Management Accountant.
She earned an Associate of Fine Arts degree from San Antonio College, a Bachelor of Business Administration, with a concentration in Accounting from St. Mary’s University, and a Master of Business Administration in Finance & Accounting from Regis University. She grew up in San Antonio and proudly graduated from Sam Houston High School.
CPS ENERGY
500 McCullough Avenue
San Antonio, TX 78215
